On Sunday at Båstad, Sweden, in the final of the Collector Swedish Open,
the 2013 champ at Roland Garros, Rome, Madrid, Charleston, Miami, and Brisbane, 31 year old top seeded #1 Serena Williams from Palm Beach Gardens, FL,
defeated
the 2011 tourney finalist, 24 year old 8th seeded #77 (career high: #46) Johanna Larsson from Helsingborg, Sweden,
6-4, 6-0 (Serena is shown distributing a popular beverage at the post-match ceremony).

Serena's prize is $40,000; Johanna's prize is $20,000.

Serena said: "It was really good to come here and win after a disappointing Wimbledon [losing in the 4th round to Sabine Lisicki] so hopefully this confidence will help me for the rest of the year." AP story

Johanna said: "At the crucial points I wasn't really present, which was a shame."

Serena and Johanna had met only once before, earlier this year in Fed Cup play at Delray Beach, Florida, when Serena defeated Johanna 6-2, 6-2.

Serena is now 53-16 in WTA singles finals. She has a 51-3 singles match record this year, losing only to Sabine Lisicki, Victoria Azarenka, and Sloane Stephens.

Johanna is now 0-3 in WTA singles finals. She has a 16-20 singles match record for the season.

Meanwhile at Bad Gastein, Austria, in the final of the Nurnberger Gastein Ladies Open,
the 2007 finalist at Bad Gastein (and last week's finalist at Budapest), 29 year old #112 (last week; this week #86, career high: #60) Yvonne Meusburger from Schwarzach, Austria,
defeated
26 year old #110 (career high: #58) Andrea Hlavackova from Plzen, Czech Republic,
7-5, 6-2 (Yvonne is shown holding the hardware after the match).

Yvonne's prize is $40,000; Andrea's prize is $20,000.

Yvonne and Andrea had met only once before, in 2009 in the 2nd round of an ITF tourney at Hechingen, Germany, when Yvonne defeated Andrea 6-3, 6-4.

Yvonne is now 1-2 in WTA singles finals. She has a 39-12 singles match record in 2013, winning 21 of her last 25 matches.

Andrea was playing in her first WTA singles final; she has won 13 WTA doubles titles, 17 ITF doubles titles, and 7 ITF singles titles. Andrea has a 13-19 singles match record this season.

The Gastein Valley is a skiing area about 90 kilometers (56 miles) from Salzburg; Bad Gastein is at an altitude of 1000 meters, and is near Stubnerkogel, 2246 meters. The Gastein tourney was new in 2007.
Venue address: Hotel Europäischer Hof, Miesbichlstraße 20, A-5640 Bad Gastein

2013: On Wednesday, July 17, young ladies looking good at the 1970s-themed player's party included Mandy Minella and Patricia Mayr-Achtleitner...

Mona said: "I think one time I had another match that was also around 35 minutes too, but I lost a game in that! I still can't believe the score and it's the first time I've won 60 60 at a WTA tournament, so that was really good for me...
"It's sometimes difficult to play in the conditions here, as it's really high and the ball flies very fast through the air. It takes some getting used to and I'm pleased with how solid I was today - I was returning well, serving well and hit quite a few aces." WTA story

The win broke a 17 match losing streak for Arantxa, which had tied the WTA record for most consecutive losses.

Arantxa said: "In the last month, I've been playing better tennis. But you need to play very well to win matches in this level. There were a few matches where I had chances to win. But I didn't change as a person and knew I could turn it round. Even so, it is a big relief to finally win today and in such a close match!"

The Collector Swedish Open (formerly the Nordic Light Open), once held at Stockholm's 1912 Olympic Stadium, was moved to Båstad in 2009. Båstad has been the site of the ATP Swedish Open since it began in 1948; the women also played there until 1990. Båstad Tennis Stadium is a few hundred yards from the beach, close to Pepe's Bodega, a local restaurant and nightclub. The stadium was rebuilt in 2002 to accommodate the Hotel Skansen underneath the seaside bleachers.

2013: On Saturday, July 14 in Båstad, top seed Serena Williams played Meet the Press...

Serena said: "I'm always happy to get to the next round. It doesn't matter who you play, it's always a really good win to go on and move on, so I'm happy I made it through the match." WTA story

n30 s2 Simona Halep ROU d n497 wc Rebecca Peterson SWE 6-4, 6-0 Wed

Simona said: "I didn't know [Rebecca] before the match, but she played really well. She's a tough, strong player. If she keeps playing like that and improving she will do big things in the future." WTA story

Johanna said: "I was trying to play heavy with some topspin deep in the court and put her on defense. That was my game plan. I think I did that pretty well today...
"I'm obviously very happy to be in the second round. It's sad I had to play Sofia in the first round. But one of us had to win, and I'm happy that it was me." WTA story

On Wednesday evening, Serena had won ESPY awards as best female athlete and best female tennis player.

Serena said: "I want to do the best that I can here. I'm staying really focused, Grand Slam style. You never want to go to a tournament and not win, or at least not perform your best. I don't know if I'll end up winning the tournament this week, but I want to play some of my best tennis here." WTA story

Flavia said: "It was a little bit of a strange match. We fought a lot in the first set. In the second set I started to play much better, much more aggressive, and I was up 5-2. I got a little bit tight and [Simona] came back to 5-all, but I was just trying to fight until the last ball, and I won the set.
"Then in the beginning of the third set I saw she was a little bit tired and injured, which is normal when you've played so many matches. I wish her the best to recover and come back very soon...
"I knew going in that she's playing better than me right now [after a six month wrist injury lay-off], but when I go on the court I just try to play my best and always think I can win. It's just really important to go onto the court and believe you can win against anybody. If you don't believe, it's that much tougher." WTA story

Richel said: "It feels very good, not just because it's my first WTA quarterfinal, but before the match I knew if I won I would be in the qualifying of the US Open. So of course it's just a great feeling. It was a really big stadium and I was really nervous but I'm glad I ended the match as the winner."

Serena said: "[Lourdes] was playing really well, so I had to be patient and stay out there as long as I could. I'm getting more used to the clay again. It feels a little better now. I want to play two more matches and win on the last day, but I have a really tough opponent coming up." WTA story

n42 s3 Klara Zakopalova CZE d n276 q Richel Hogenkamp NED 6-2, 6-3

Klara said: "The score looks easy but it was not an easy match because it was windy, and the wind was changing a lot. But [Richel is] a young and talented player. I never played against her but my coach was watching her so I knew some things, and I'm really happy I'm through today."

Serena said: "I was hardly making mistakes in the first set... In the second set [Klara] started playing a lot better. She was being more aggressive, and I started making some errors on a few key points... I'm happy I could close it out though." WTA story

About the final, Serena said: "[Johanna] has nothing to lose and everything to gain, and that's a great position to be in. I remember playing her this year. She has a good serve, a good kick. I always thought she'd be good on clay. And I remember her spirit. She was fighting really hard. I'm excited that she's in the final."

n77 s8 Johanna Larsson SWE d n100 Flavia Pennetta ITA 2-6, 6-3, 6-4

Johanna about to swat a backhand

About the final, Johanna said: "I'm really excited to play the final here again. With Serena on the other side of the net it's going to be extremely tough out there, but I'll just try my best and keep doing my thing tomorrow."